An engineering and marketing survey conducted by Nexergy, Inc., a leading manufacturer of battery packs and chargers, identifies runtime and battery capacity as the most important factors in selecting battery chemistry and technology in portable products. The survey also indicated a lack of familiarity and understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of the many battery chemistries available on the market today.
The survey was distributed via email in August 2008 to approximately 3,000 Nexergy customers and prospects.
Runtime and capacity were the most important elements of battery performance among both design engineers as well as marketers, according to the survey. Cost ranked fifth most important on a list of seven criteria by engineers; among marketers it was even less important, just sixth out of seven. Rounding out the most important factors after runtime, in order of priority, were safety, cycle life, power, cost, size and weight
“Runtime, cycle life and power are at the beginning of nearly every discussion we have with our customers,” noted Phil Glandon, Nexergy president and CEO. “Based on what we see in the survey data, engineers and designers believe that with the proper cell selection and battery electronics they can create a competitive advantage for their products with a better battery pack.”
When asked whether battery performance was able to provide a competitive advantage to their products, design engineers responded with a 4.0 out of 5.0 average score, strongly agreeing that battery technology led directly to competitive advantage. Further, design engineers disagreed strongly that battery packs are a commodity. When asked if they agreed with the statement that battery packs “are basically seen as a commodity,” on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being strongly agree and 1 being strongly disagree, the respondents averaged a 1.92.
“The design of the electronics in a battery pack that control charge and discharge with elements such as gas gauging is key to improving performance, and we can see in the study that the industry is coming to appreciate that,” said Glandon. “Ensuring that the charge or discharge cycles don’t terminate prematurely or that the pack is not abusively charged or over discharged affects both capacity and cycle life.”
“It was a bit surprising,” he added, “that cost appeared so low on the priority list for both groups we surveyed, and nearly at the bottom among our marketing contacts. Battery performance clearly is seen as a core competitive advantage by our customers, and that should be the primary consideration as we make design decisions on new battery packs for our customers.”
Glandon noted that battery safety was a common theme that was reflected in several survey responses throughout the questionnaire.
“Safety was seen as the second most important characteristic in selecting the right battery chemistry by engineers and designers, right after runtime performance,” Glandon said. “Safety’s been on our customer’s minds more than ever lately, and that’s always a big question during our customer meetings. They want to know if a change in battery chemistry will affect safety, and they don’t want to do anything to subject their designs to a potential recall.”
The rapid evolution in new battery technology during the past few years has caused confusion in the marketplace among both marketers and design engineers, according to the study. When asked questions related to battery chemistry, the number of “don’t know” responses throughout the survey was surprisingly high, said Glandon.
“There have been many new developments in terms of technology and regulation in the industry of late, and the survey responses indicate a broad divergence between those who understand their impact and those who don’t,” he said. For instance, when asked to identify among a list of six battery chemistries which would be considered for their next portable power solutions, a third of design engineers, 34 percent, said they didn’t know.
“There are so many different variants of lithium ion cells, for instance, and not every one fits every application,” explained Glandon. “Some are better suited to high temperature, some are ideal for supporting higher discharge rates. The key element is to understand all the different cell chemistries available and to select the right one that delivers the longest runtime and overall performance while taking into account the application’s other requirements such as size, cost, and weight.”
One of the more significant new regulations affecting the industry has to do with updated Department of Transportation rules governing the shipment of lithium batteries, said Glandon. The survey revealed that much work needs to be done to ensure a greater understanding of the new requirements. When asked if they believed their companies had “a thorough understanding of the new lithium battery shipping regulations,” just one out of four design engineers responded their companies were “very aware”; one out of five marketers said they were “not aware of what my company is doing.”
Nexergy’s Glandon added that there is a need to educate customers on the chemistries and performance of various battery technologies. “Because of our experience in so many different battery technologies in use today, rather than just a few specialties, we are well-positioned to assist our customers in making the right decisions in balancing performance and trade-off decisions,” he said.
About Nexergy: With more than 20 years of experience, Nexergy is a leading designer, integrator and manufacturer of battery packs and chargers that enable electronic products to be more dependable, smaller, lighter, and longer-running. Nexergy is based in Columbus, OH (USA), and operates additional design and assembly centers in Littleton, CO, Canon City, CO, and Escondido, CA. Through its strong international partnerships, the company also manufactures product in the Asia/Pacific region. Nexergy is an ISO 9001:2000 certified company. For more information, please visit www.nexergy.com.